Gasoline vapor attachment for automotive engines



S. P. GREVAS Aug. 16, 1955 Filed Aug. 4, 1954 I IIfl/IIIIIIZ VIIIIIIIIAGASOLINE VAPOR ATTACHMENT FOR AUTOMOTIVE ENGINES INVENTOR. STEVE GREVAS.

(flaw/ray:

United States Patent Ofi ice 2,715,392 Patented Aug. 16, 1955 GASOLINEVAPOR ATTACHMENT FOR AUTOMOTIVE ENGINES Steve P. Grevas, Granite City,Ill.

Application August 4, 1954, Serial No. 447,822

4 Claims. (Cl. 123-25) This invention relates to an attachment forautomobile engines and has for its purpose the following objects:

1. To greatly increase the mileage of an automobile by the use of anovel attachment means which supplies additional fuel vapor to theengine carburetor.

2. To supply additional fuel vapor to the carburetor through the mediumof the conventional vacuum fuel feed system.

3. To manually control the amount of vacuum for supplying vapor fuelfrom an outside source to the carburetor by means of a conventional footaccelerator.

4. To provide a supplemental fuel vapor attachment for an engine whichvapor is available for quick acceleration to thereby increase theperformance of the engine,

5. To provide a fuel vapor supplying attachment that will permit theomission of floats, jets or other means for controlling fuel pressureand air, and which will permit the use of smaller jets in conventionalcarburetors.

6. To supply a Water vapor attachment for supplying supplementary watervapor to the charge having added fuel vapor in order to compensate forthe added fuel vapor.

Other objects will appear hereinafter in the specification.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of an engine block, partly brokenaway and showing the novel attachment with its means for connecting thesame to the fuel intake of the engine;

Figure 2 is a view of a conventional butterfly valve which has beenmodified in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the auxiliary tank, with the vapor linebroken away to show the air inlet;

Figure 4 is an enlarged vertical section of an auxiliary fuel tank withpipe connections shown in full lines; and

Figure 5 is a perspective view of parts of the structure shown in Figure1.

The present invention may be used either with or without the structureshown and claimed in my Patent No. 2,252,972, granted August 14, 1941.closed in this patent pertains to means for heating the gaseous fuel forautomobile engines, after it has left the carburetor of the engine,while the present invention is directed to a means for supplyingadditional gaseous fuel from an independent source to the intakemanifold of an engine, and alternatively to add more water vapor to thecharge.

Referring to the drawings numeral indicates the engine block of anautomobile engine, although it will be understood that the engine may beused in boats or other power driven vehicles such as airplanes. It willbe further understood that the engine block shown may form one cylinderbank of a V-type engine, or the block shown may be that of an in-linetype of engine.

The engine is provided with an intake manifold 12 and a carburetor 14below which is located a conventional butterfly valve 16.

The invention dis- (about) internal diameter.

Connected into the intake manifold, as shown in Figures l and 5, so asto be affected by the adjustment of the butterfly valve is thesupplementary fuel vapor line 20. The butterfly valve is controlled by alinkage arrangement shown at 22 that connects to a conventionalaccelerator pedal 24 which is conventionally mounted so as to beoperated by the driver of the vehicle. The vapor line is connected to aT-shaped pipe union 26 forming part of the vapor line, and the vaporline 20, the left end and the vertical portion 18 of the T-shaped unionhave about a 5 internal diameter. One of the horizontal legs may be Aand this leads to the radiator 70. In using this construction, the vaporwhich vaporizes from the water in the radiator mixes directly with thegas vapor in the pipe union 26 and from this point goes to thecarburetor. The pipe union extends through the top 28 of thesupplemental fuel tank 30. This tank preferably is of a size that willcontain about two gallons of gasoline or other engine fuel. Alsoextending through the top 28 is an air inlet pipe 32 whose internaldiameter is preferably and whose lower end 34 is located substantiallytwo inches from the bottom 36 of the tank.

When the accelerator pedal is depressed, the butterfly valve is opened,this operation increasing the minus pressure in the intake manifold, andas the pedal is depressed further, a higher minus pressure or vacuum isapplied to the vapor line 20. The operation is such that the greater theamount of pedal depression, the greater the amount of vacuum in theintake manifold and the increase in minus pressure is applied to thevapor line 20, the interior of the tank 30, and to the pipe leg 60.

In order to prevent a vapor lock in the tank 30, a supplemental opening38 is made in the top 28. This opening is preferably covered by a screen40 in order to prevent the entrance of extraneous matter to the tank 36.The opening 38 is preferably of the order of /8 in diameter.

The butterfly valve 16 is provided with a control opening 42 of about 4in order to take care of a condition Where the butterfly valve has beenset for idling purposes as seen in Figure 2.

As will be noted by reference to Figure 1, a hole is drilled adjacenteach side of the intake manifold in order to connect thereto the pipeends 44 having a Mr" These pipe ends form part of the central pipe 46 ofthe same diameter, and the lower end 48 of the T is connected to thevapor line 20, as shown in Figures 1 and 5.

The fuel tank 30 may be mounted conveniently under the hood of theautomobile. It is preferably maintained filled to about one-half tothree-fourths of its capacity.

The conventional vacuum fuel line of the engine operates to draw thefuel and water vapors from the upper area of the auxiliary fuel tank 30and radiator into the carburetor to be mixed with the fuel and vaporfrom the main fuel tank of the engine, not shown. During this timeatmospheric air enters through pipe 32 and bubbles up through the fuelin tank 30, picking up particles of fuel as it moves upwardly throughthe same to thereby cause fuel vapor to accumulate in the top of thetank 30. The auxiliary fuel in the form of vapor passes through thevapor line 20 to the intake manifold of the engine, thereby increasingthe efliciency of the engine. The auxiliary vapor from the tank 30 makesit possible to reduce the sizes of the jets in the carburetor. Motoracceleration is also aided by the additional source of gaseous fuel,thereby increasing engine performance.

The T line represented by parts 44, 46 and 48 is connected to the intakemanifold 12 in order to equally distribute the minus pressure in theintake manifold to the chamber in which the butterfly valve operates,and from this chamber to the interior of the auxiliary tank 30.

The above description and drawings disclose a single embodiment of theinvention, and specific language has been employed in describing theseveral figures. It will, nevertheless, be understood that'nolimitations of the scope of the invention are thereby contemplated, andthat various alterations and modifications may be made such as wouldoccur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

I claim:

1. In an automotive engine having an intake manifold, a carburetor, anengine radiator, a fuel line and a butterfly valve in said line, meansfor controlling the position of the butterfly valve including anaccelerator pedal: the combination with said engine of an auxiliarytank, said tank having a top, a vapor line connected to said intakemanifold and to said auxiliary tank whereby the amount of vacuum appliedto said auxiliary tank is controlled by said butterfly valve, an airinlet pipe extending through said top and terminating short of thebottom of said tank, said butterfly valve having an opening extendingtherethrougb whereby to allow for idling purposes of said engine, a Tconstruction comprising a pipe, the top portion of said T having endsconnected to said intake manifold, the lower portion of said T beingconnected to said conduit means, and a supplemental line having one ofits ends connected to said radiator and its other end connected to saidvapor line.

2. In an automotive engine having an intake manifold, a carburetor, anengine radiator, a fuel line and a butterfly valve in said line, meansfor controlling the position of the butterfly valve including anaccelerator pedal: the combination with said engine of an auxiliarytank, said tank having a top, vapor line connected to said intakemanifold and to said auxiliary tank whereby the amount of vacuum appliedto said auxiliary tank is controlled by said buterfly valve, an L-shapedpipe union extending through said top and terminating short of thebottom of said tank, said L-shaped pipe union forming a part of saidvapor line, said butterfly valve having an opening extendingtherethrough whereby to allow for idling purposes of said engine, a Tconstruction comprising a pipe, the top portion of said T having endsconnected to said intake manifold, the lower portion of said T beingconnected to said conduit means, and a supplemental line having one ofits ends connected to said radiator and its other end connected to saidL-shaped pipe union of said vapor line.

3. In an automotive engine having an intake manifold, a carburetor, anengine radiator, a fuel line and a butterfly valve in said line, meansfor controlling the position of the butterfly valve including anaccelerator pedal: the combination with said engine of an auxiliarytank, said tank having a top, a vapor line connected to said intakemanifold and to said auxiliary tank, an air pipe extending through saidtop and terminating short of the bottom of said tank, whereby the amountof vacuum applied to said auxiliary tank is controlled by said butterflyvalve, said butterfly valve having an opening extending therethroughwhereby to allow for idling purposes of said engine, and a supplementalline having one of its ends connected to said radiator and its other endconnected to said vapor line.

4. In an automotive engine having an intake manifold, a carburetor, anengine radiator, a fuel line and a butterfly valve in said line, meansfor controlling the position of the butterfly valve including anaccelerator pedal: the combination with said engine of an auxiliarytank, said tank having a top, a vapor line connected to said intakemanifold and to said auxiliary tank, an air pipe extending through saidtop and terminating short of the bottom of said tank, whereby the amountof vacuum applied to said auxiliary tank is controlled by said butterflyvalve, said butterfly valve having an opening extendingtherethroughwhereby to allow for idling purposes of said engine, and a supplementalline having one of its ends connected to said radiator and its other endconnected to said vapor line, said supplementary line having a smallerinternal diameter than said vapor line.

Miller et al Sept. 1, 1936 Ennis Nov. 12, 1940

